Webinar: Aligned Discontinuous Fibers: Sustainability without Compromising Performance by Gardner Business Media, Inc. Webinars

Don’t miss your chance to be ahead of the curve—reserve your spot and be part of the conversation shaping the future of composites.

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About This Webinar

The composites industry is under increasing pressure to deliver high-performance materials while improving sustainability, manufacturing efficiency and design freedom. Manufacturers are being asked to reduce waste, integrate recycled content and support complex part geometries — all without compromising quality, scalability or process compatibility. These demands are driving the need for new material formats that move beyond conventional tradeoffs.

In this webinar, Mandy Clement will introduce UNIMAT, a scalable aligned nonwoven solution from James Cropper. Achieving more than 95 percent fiber alignment, UNIMAT delivers exceptional mechanical performance while offering the flexibility required for modern composite manufacturing. Clement will explore how UNIMAT enables the use of recycled and post-industrial waste (PIW) carbon fiber, supports complex geometries through improved conformability and integrates with multiple resin systems and processing routes.

Dale Brosius will then place this innovation in a broader industry context, examining how aligned nonwovens can help address key challenges across composite markets. From aerospace and automotive to sporting goods and advanced air mobility, the session will highlight how this material approach supports circular manufacturing, reduces cost and material waste, and unlocks new design possibilities — enabling manufacturers to align composite performance with sustainability goals.

Presented by:

Agenda

Why sustainability and processability are critical pain points in composites today.
Innovative Alignment Technology: How UNIMAT delivers directional performance with the added benefit of design flexibility and handling.
Circular Economy Impact: The role of recycled and post-industrial fibers in meeting sustainability targets.
Hybridization: Fiber agnostic processing technology gives manufacturers and partners freedom to design bespoke solutions, including the incorporation of thermoplastic fibres, low-melt resins, recycled blends and more.
Integration with multiple processes and resin systems for scalable manufacturing.

Presenters

Mandy Clement

Innovation Director, James Cropper

Dr. Mandy Clement CSci CChem FRSC is the innovation director at James Cropper Advanced Materials (JCAM). With over 20 years of experience, Mandy has successfully led numerous industrial R&D projects, transforming innovative ideas into commercially viable solutions. Under Mandy's leadership, the JCAM innovation and customer team excels in the research, development and commercialization of advanced nonwoven solutions tailored to market-driven applications. Currently, the team is pioneering the use of recycled materials for AAM & aerospace applications, and developing multifunctional materials for energy storage. Mandy is a Chartered Scientist, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) and has a doctorate in chemistry.

Dale Brosius

President and Owner, Brosius Management Consulting

Dale Brosius is president and owner of Brosius Management Consulting; and since 1999 has completed numerous market studies, assisted in strategic planning and aided companies in merger and acquisition activities across multiple market elements of the composites supply chain.

He recently retired from serving 11 years as chief commercialization officer for the Institute for Advanced Composites Manufacturing Innovation (IACMI), the Manufacturing USA Institute serving the composites industry. His career includes manufacturing and marketing roles for Dow Chemical, where he led innovations in automotive composites. Subsequently, at Fiberite and Cytec, he led numerous activities related to high performance carbon fiber prepreg-based components for aerospace and industrial markets and managed molding compound businesses in the U.S. and France. Prior to joining IACMI, he spent 10 years with Australia-based Quickstep Technologies, setting up demonstration sites in the U.K., Germany and the U.S. for Quickstep’s innovative out-of-autoclave curing technology. He is the current chair of the composites division of the Society of Plastics Engineers and is the author of over 150 articles and editorials for CompositesWorld magazine. He holds a bachelor's degree in chemical engineering and an MBA.